With just four days to kick off their opening match at the 2024 Beach Soccer Afcon in Egypt, the Black Sharks of Ghana find themselves in a tight corner as players and officials are yet to secure visas.
Sources close to the team have revealed that visas are yet to be secured for the Ghanaian players and officials because some documents needed to process the visas have not yet been submitted by the Ghana FA.
The shocking revelation came to light when worried CAF tournament organizers frantically contacted Ghanaian officials to confirm whether their team was still going to honor the tournament to be hosted in the coastal city of Hurghada.
The exact reasons for the worrying delay are unclear, but players and officials are believed to have submitted their passports to the FA for processing several weeks ago.
When contacted, officials at the Egyptian consulate in Ghana could only confirm that even in the worst-case scenario, there are provisions for “visa-oon – arrival” services in Cairo.
It has also emerged that participating countries must be in Egypt not less than 72 hours before the opening match on Saturday, October 19th.
Meanwhile, the team wrapped up their local camping preparations on Monday as scheduled, in anticipation of their departure from Accra on Wednesday, October 16th, as originally scheduled.
The delay and its attendant uncertainties could have serious implications for the Black Sharks, who find themselves in the group of death alongside emerging East African beach nation Tanzania, Afro Beach Games gold medalist Morocco, and host nation Egypt.
The Sharks have previously participated at Afcon beach soccer tournaments in Morocco, the Seychelles, and Nigeria.
